Very briefly the Senechal stated that they were there to find out, if
they could, how Tom Hamon came by his death, and added very gravely, in
a deep silence, that after a most careful examination of the body the
Doctor was of opinion that death had been caused, not by the fall from
the Coupee, which accounted for the dreadful bruises, but by violent
blows on the head with a hammer or some sueh thing prior to the fall.
They wanted to find out all about it.
The Doctor stood up and confirmed what the Senechal had said, went
somewhat more into detail to substantiate his opinion, and ended by
saying, "The head, as it happens, is less bruised than any other part of
the body, except on the crown, and that is practically beaten in, and
not, I am prepared to swear, by a fall. These wounds were the immediate
cause of death, and they were made before he fell down the rocks.
Besides, he went down feet first. The abrasions on the legs and thighs
prove that beyond a doubt. Then again, the base of the skull is not
fractured, as it most certainly would have been if he had fallen on his
head.
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